George Foreman is viewed as one of the hardest hitting heavyweights of all time.
The two-time world heavyweight champion finished with 76 wins and just 5 defeats during his remarkable career, with an incredible 68 of those victories coming by knockout.
The likes of Joe Frazier and Ken Norton fell victim to the power of Foreman during the peak of his career, before ‘Big George’ also knocked out Michael Moorer at the age of 45 in 1994 to become the oldest world heavyweight champion in history, showing that he still possessed his massive power during the latter stages of his career.
A former world heavyweight champion that Foreman fought in his final professional fight has now declared that ‘Big George’ hit him so hard he couldn’t speak for two weeks.
Foreman took on Shannon Briggs in November 1997, and while Briggs may have won by majority decision, ‘The Cannon’ once explained just how hard his rival hit him.
“Oh man, he hit so hard I couldn’t speak for two weeks. He knocked me out in the seventh round and hit me with another punch that woke me back up. I never felt anything like it, it was like bone breaking. I was like, “man, I’ve got to do this” because my back was against the wall. What, I was just gonna get knocked out like everybody else? No, man. That aint in me.”
Foreman was humble in defeat, however most feels the loss was unfair and the incorrect decision – a less than ideal way to end his famous career.
After being admitted to hospital, Foreman sadly passed away at the age of 76 in March 2025, but his incredible legacy will live on forever.
